Call for Speakers Who Can Help Us Level Up Our Game at ILSHRM15

 We have played around with themes for the last several years at ILSHRM, but we have not really gotten serious with them. In September, Julie and I had the pleasure of attending OHSHRM and man were we impressed with how they incorporated their theme into every aspect of the event. We loved it and wanted to get serious about using and asking our speakers/exhibitors to use our theme as much as possible.

So with a hat tip to our SHRM Director, Martha Ramirez, Julie came up with Level Up Your HR Game. I don't know what comes to your mind when you hear that, but in my mind I see Mario on my Nintendo jumping up and hitting the mushroom, beating the level and it saying Level Up!

At the 2015 conference we want to help practitioners level up their game. Regardless of whether they are playing Chutes and Ladders at the kitchen table, Mario Bros on the Wii or Candy Crush on their iPhone 6+, we want to help you be better. We want to help you think about where you are now and how you are going to get to the next level – even if that next level means staying put for a while. We want to challenge you will meeting your experience level.

We have so much stuff cooked up I want to spill the beans right now, but can't. What I can tell you is that much of this starts with amazing content. We need speakers who can help us help practitioners in the state of IL Level Up their game.

To that end, the 2015 Call for Speakers is up. There are two different calls, keynote and concurrent. While you don't have to follow our theme, submissions that align with it will be highly considered. Also, to be considered for a keynote position, you need to have keynoted a conference of this size in the past. Please indicate that on your submission.

To submit a keynote session, click here:

To submit a concurrent session, click here:

 Registration will open soon! Hope to see you all in September.

Sabrina Baker

Work is Working in Illinois

 

 

Mike Spinale, Diversity Director

Today, during the Illinois New Laws Forum, 12 worksites from across the state were honored for their approach to creating flexible and effective work environments.  The When Work Works Awards, a collaboration of the Families and Work Institute and the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), is an annual initiative recognizing organizations and businesses nationwide who are leading the way in building workplace cultures that promote employee wellness, work/life balance, and development.  The Illinois State Council of SHRM is the official community partner of the When Work Works Awards and hosted the awards luncheon in Lisle. This year’s winners are:

 BDO USA, LLP – Chicago (2 worksites)
 CohnReznick, LLP – Chicago
 Frost, Ruttenberg, & Rothblatt, PC – Deerfield
 KPMG, LLP – Chicago
 Laughlin Constable – Chicago
 Naval Station Great Lakes – Great Lakes
 NCH Marketing Services, a Valassis Company – Deerfield
 RSG – Chicago
 Ryan, LLC – Chicago (2 worksites) & Downer’s Grove

Nominees for the When Work Works Awards are evaluated on six research-based ingredients of an effective workplace: opportunities for learning; a culture of trust; work-life fit; supervisor support for work success; autonomy; and satisfaction with earnings, benefits and opportunities for advancement — all factors associated with employee health, well-being, and engagement.

When work works, companies and organizations recognize that employees have needs and demands that go beyond the office.  BDO USA, LLP is a national accounting and consulting firm with two worksites in Chicago.  BDO provides employees with emergency backup dependent care that can be used with advanced notice or at the last minute.  In some cases, employees are allowed to bring their children on company required trips and are provided with nanny care.  Ryan, LLC, with three Illinois worksites earning a When Work Works Award, empowers employees to work together to figure out problems and challenges; their receptionist teams recently worked out, without any management intervention, a scheduling issue resulting in each of them having a half day off per week and the desk being fully covered.   Common among all of this year’s winners were cultures where employees are judged on the quality of their work and ability to get the job done, not from where and for how long they work.  Telecommuting, flex schedules, compressed workweeks, summer hours, time off for school events, etc.  These companies get that their employees have lives outside of work and they don’t want them to miss out on it.

But it’s not just about being flexible with family demands; it’s also about investing in employees - in their careers and development.  CohnReznick LLP, a finance and accounting consultancy, allows employees to make requests for particular assignments that are based on their professional or travel interests.  Frost, Ruttenberg & Rothblatt, a Deerfield-based CPA firm, assigns each professional staffer a mentor and also offers coaching services for their professional growth and development.  Laughlin Constable, a Chicago-based advertising agency, cross trains employees to broaden their insights and technical skills.

This year’s When Work Works Award winners get it.  When you create a work environment and corporate culture that respects people’s lives outside of work, you get employees who are more engaged and committed to the organization.  When you invest in your staff’s professional development, you show your commitment to their growth and you build a talent pool prepared for bigger challenges as your own organization grows.  These organizations get it.  This is how work works.

What are you doing in your organization to make work work?

Give to Grill!

by Donna Rogers, SPHR, ILSHRM College Relations Director



Yeah that's right...this year's SHRM Foundation Chapter basket theme seems to be grilling.  Whereas last year it seemed to be Coffee and the year before that was Kindle and years before that it was IPods.  So what am I saying here? We are all a creature of habit.  We all copy each other. No! I say great minds think alike.  Oh yeah! ILSHRM Chapters have been donating theme (their own in fact) based baskets for several years just to help raise money for an organization that contributes to those great minds.  The SHRM Foundation!

What is the SHRM Foundation? Well in my own words based on my own person experience they are the organization I plug into in order to expand my own mind.  Maybe not directly but certainly indirectly.  I have been the recipient of a $750 scholarship for which they grant annually (many of these and other amounts).  The scholarship program helps active professionals as well as HR students.  In addition, I have participated in roundtables and facilitated them as well using their SHRM Foundation DVD Series.  I have also read many of their research reports as well as booklets containing new knowledge.  All of this has helped me become more productive over the years.

So why am I sharing all this? I am asking you to give to "possibly" grill using one of the three that will be given away at 10am tomorrow morning.  If you don't cook like me, there is a bunch more you can win instead like enough wine to slur your words for weeks, fix up your garden, check out the latest movie (with popcorn) or season those steaks your significant other grills for you.  Yep it's all there...a diverse group of 25 different baskets of goodies all for your money.

I gave $50 so I have 80 tickets to put in those baskets.  You can get tickets for as little as $5 buckets and you may win that hair product basket that I want with your few tickets.  It's the luck of the draw. So give to grill today or early tomorrow and help improve our profession!

The Art of Leadership (LIVE)

Reprinted with permission
Robin Schooling
http://hrschoolhouse.com

Editor's note: Special thanks to Robin for sharing her thoughts and experience on the Sunday workshop of #ILSHRM14.

The Illinois SHRM 2014 Annual Conference and Exposition (#ILSHRM14) kicked off this afternoon with a great pre-conference workshop – “The Art of Leadership” with Joe Gerstandt and Doug Shaw.

It was a wonderful afternoon exploring creativity and the possibilities that arise when we open our minds. Joe and Doug challenged us to consider what happens at the intersection of communication, style and intent. We sketched, we drew, and we laughed. We practiced storytelling techniques and we co-created. It was a safe, positive, encouraging environment and a super way to get our brains operating in a different manner than the way in which we often walk into a conference.

Joe pointed out that in HR we sometimes design things because they need to be done and not necessarily because we think through how they will work.  And as we moved through some ensuing exercises we saw how this plays out; when we change the dynamics of a group, or perhaps the messenger this can have an impact on not just the interaction but also on the end result.

The over riding takeaway that i got from the workshop was the need for those of us who work in HR to think about how we can ‘humanize” ( to shamelessly steal a word used by others) not just how we practice HR, but also how we operate as leaders…and co-workers to all the employees in our organizations.

After an exercise on using improv techniques (practicing “yes…and…”) at our tables, an attendee in the workshop pointed out that “building on the ideas of other people is much more difficult than disagreeing.”

Think about that. Whether you work in human resources or any other business function. Whether you are interacting with people on the job, in a volunteer organization or even, let’s face it, with friends and family.

Quite often, in a rush to get things done or with a personal desire to “sell our idea’ to all any who will listen, we perhaps move past both seeking support and being supportive … and right into battle mode. Winning mode.

Is it wrong to want to be victorious? Of course not. But it’s not just about “winner takes all.”

Winners can share; stories, emotions, ideas, and support.

And so can leaders.

The Illinois SHRM 2014 Annual Conference and Exposition (#ILSHRM14) kicked off this afternoon with a great pre-conference workshop – “The Art of Leadership” with Joe Gerstandt and Doug Shaw.

It was a wonderful afternoon exploring creativity and the possibilities that arise when we open our minds. Joe and Doug challenged us to consider what happens at the intersection of communication, style and intent. We sketched, we drew, and we laughed. We practiced storytelling techniques and we co-created. It was a safe, positive, encouraging environment and a super way to get our brains operating in a different manner than the way in which we often walk into a conference.

Joe pointed out that in HR we sometimes design things because they need to be done and not necessarily because we think through how they will work.  And as we moved through some ensuing exercises we saw how this plays out; when we change the dynamics of a group, or perhaps the messenger this can have an impact on not just the interaction but also on the end result.

The over riding takeaway that i got from the workshop was the need for those of us who work in HR to think about how we can ‘humanize” ( to shamelessly steal a word used by others) not just how we practice HR, but also how we operate as leaders…and co-workers to all the employees in our organizations.

After an exercise on using improv techniques (practicing “yes…and…”) at our tables, an attendee in the workshop pointed out that “building on the ideas of other people is much more difficult than disagreeing.”

Think about that. Whether you work in human resources or any other business function. Whether you are interacting with people on the job, in a volunteer organization or even, let’s face it, with friends and family.

Quite often, in a rush to get things done or with a personal desire to “sell our idea’ to all any who will listen, we perhaps move past both seeking support and being supportive … and right into battle mode. Winning mode.
Is it wrong to want to be victorious? Of course not. But it’s not just about “winner takes all.”
Winners can share; stories, emotions, ideas, and support.
And so can leaders.

ILSHRM Kicks Off With Sunday Super Session

Illinois SHRM kicked off the 2014 Illinois SHRM state conference with a special workshop Sunday afternoon featuring Doug Shaw and Joe Gerstandt. Doug and Joe shared three hours with ILSHRM members teaching the Art of Leadership.

Doug and Joe's objective was for participants to be better equipped to introduce creativity and innovation into their workplace. It's proven that it matters, but creativity is often absent in workplaces for reasons not limited to, according to participants, being too busy, too risky, and too limited.

So how did we work on our creativity? We drew. Yes, we drew pictures.
It was fun, rejuvenating, thought-provoking. It was back-to-the-basics creative.  But here's what we learned. Creativity is best served when there is no fear of judgment.  It was free-for-all sketching when we knew we could draw our very own masterpiece and it would be tossed on the floor, to be seen by no one. But we were, perhaps,  more careful when we knew we had to show our work to our peers. Do we judge our staff and colleagues to the point of stifling creativity at the workplace?

Creativity can be defined as improvisation, doing something that is not planned. But to go without a plan, to pave a new way, to think differently, you still need some guiding rules and principles.

Rule 1. There are no mistakes.

Three principles:

1. Listen.
2. Say "Yes."
3. Commit.

In other words, Say "yes and..." 

Consider something like this: "Yes, I like that idea AND we could also...."

Doug and Joe brought creativity to a fabulous workshop at ILSHRM14.

Yes, AND in all the conversations, experiments and collaborations, we learned to bring creativity back to the workplace.

Student Achievement at Illinois State University

The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) has awarded a 2013-2014 Outstanding Student Chapter designation to the Illinois State University-SHRM student chapter. This designation is awarded to a select number of SHRM student chapters whose programs and activities were at a level that distinguished them from other chapters. This marks the second time ISU-SHRM has been recognized as an Outstanding Student Chapter, first in 2010.

SHRM is the world’s largest association devoted to human resource management. Representing more than 275,000 professional and 19,000 student members in over 140 countries, the association serves the needs of HR professionals and advances the interests of the HR profession.

The SHRM student chapter merit award program, which began in 1972, exists to encourage development of more effective student chapters and to promote outstanding activities and projects by student chapters in the following areas: student chapter requirements, chapter operations, chapter programming and professional development of members, support of the human resource profession and SHRM engagement.

The ISU-SHRM student chapter is advised by Dr. Joseph M. Goodman and Dr. Nathan Hartman, Department of Management and Quantitative Methods. “I’m pleased with our students’ efforts and accomplishments,” stated Dr. Goodman. “ISU-SHRM has a tradition of excellence. The chapter has achieved the Superior Merit Award consecutively for the past 13 years. To be recognized by our national organization twice, as an Outstanding Student Chapter, is an honor and a reflection of some very talented young professionals.”

For more information about Illinois State University’s human resource management concentration, contact Dr. John Bantham, Department of Management and Quantitative Methods Chair, Dr. Joseph Goodman, SPHR, Associate Professor of Management, or visit the department’s website at http://business.illinoisstate.edu/management/sequences/hr.shtml.

Some Light Reading of “SHRM Certification Announcement” Communications

submitted by Donna Rogers Skowronski

Needless to say, HR professionals all across the world are a bit confused this week by SHRM’s announcement of a competency based certification.  Personally, I believe, this confusion could have been prevented with a little more strategic planning and communication from those who made the decision to release this information.  The fact that the HRCI Executive Director did not receive advance notification leaves me a bit disappointed for a variety of reason.  Mainly, because just last year I was among four other representatives from across the country who shared with the SHRM board that membership in general feels “their house is not in order”.  There is a lot that goes into that statement based on some research that we conducted from a volunteer sample of the members.  However, the bottom line is that the comment related to turnover, previous problems with transparency perception, and communication between the other two organizations so closely related to SHRM (the foundation and HRCI).  Just last month I attended a student SHRM conference where I heard from a fellow volunteer that they were on a newly created committee with members of all three organizations with the goal to improve communications.  Basically the idea which supported our recommendation was to consistently let the right hand known what the left hand is doing.  Unfortunately, this week’s announcement took the whole effort backwards in my humble opinion.

Yesterday, I was contacted by the president of my local chapter to help explain what is going on to the membership at next week’s general membership meeting.  They had a board meeting just after the announcement hit in boxes but before other communications came out from both SHRM and HRCI.  So needless to say, the board was at a loss to answer a multitude of questions that arose at the board meeting and from members.  Just after that I received an email from a local member and another today.  I am certainly no expert and I really don’t want to be misquoted or take a chance at being misunderstood by interpreting something that is still a little unclear in my own mind even after reading all I can about the subject.  So instead of clarifying for you, I have done a search for all communications I can locate up to this point about the topic so you can find them all in one place.  I am sure in the coming days, weeks, and months, more details will unfold.  Until that time, try to stay afloat in the muddy water as the rest of the 14k certified individuals, myself included, will do the same (not to mention those unsure about whether to move forward with certification which I am guessing is also in the thousands). 

Here is what I have located so far:

From SHRM

The initial announcement: http://www.shrm.org/Publications/HRNews/Pages/New-SHRM-Certification.aspx#sthash%2EzRgqnFv9%2EVVotHkbj%2Edpuf

Sent to volunteers from SHRM: http://msg.shrm.org/site/MessageViewer?dlv_id=109043&em_id=104282.0

From HRCI

From HRCI: http://www.hrci.org/docs/default-source/press-releases/statement-from-the-hr-certification-institute.pdf?sfvrsn=4

Press Release From HRCI: http://www.hrci.org/docs/default-source/press-releases/hrci-clarifies-confusion-around-certifications.pdf?sfvrsn=4

Various Posts Not from SHRM or HRCI

Workforce held an online chat today: http://www.workforce.com/articles/hrci-shrm-live-chat

HRCI: Surprised by SHRM Plan to Offer HR Certifications:  http://www.workforce.com/articles/20474-hrci-surprised-by-shrm-plan-to-offer-hr-certifications

Chicago SHRM 5/14/14 Certification Update-Recertification Program Changes

http://chicagoshrm.wordpress.com/2014/03/25/certification-update-recertification-program-changes/

New #SHRM Certification Raises More Questions Than It Answers (Update X 2)

http://truefaithhr.blogspot.com/2014/05/new-shrm-certification-raises-more.html

SHRM to Stop Supporting PHR, SPHR Certifications

http://upstarthr.com/shrm-stop-supporting-phrsphr/

J.J. Keller on 5/14/14 SHRM approves plan for new human resource certification based on competencies

http://www.jjkeller.com/shop/content_home__article_SHRM-approves-plan-for-new-human-resource-certification-based-on-competencies*052014_10151_-1_10551

 

 

 

Kudos to Illinois SHRM Chapters

Our Chapters are awesome. In our latest SHMR In-Chapter Report, the Illinois State Council was notified of our chapters' incredible accomplishments. We are so proud!
 

Congratulations to the following Star and SuperStar Chapters for March:

Stars:

·         Rockford Area SHRM (4^th consecutive month)

·         DuPage (1^st time this year – good job!)

SuperStars:

·         HRA of Greater Oak Brook (2^nd consecutive month)

·         Central Illinois Chapter of SHRM (4^th consecutive month)

·         Central Illinois HR Group (1^st time this year and totally bypassed Star!)

·         Heart of IL HR Council (2^nd consecutive month)

·         Grundy Will HR Assn. (4^th consecutive month)

 

The SHAPE effort is just that - EFFORT. Congrats to area state chapters who were recognized as SHAPE Winners for 2013!

Platinum:

·         Central Illinois Chapter of SHRM (Back-to-back awards)!  You Rock!!

Gold: 

·         Chicago SHRM (Silver)

·         HRA East Central Illinois (Last year no award) Awesome!

·         Stateline SHRM (Gold)

Silver:

·         Rockford Area SHRM (Silver)

·         Northwest HR Council (Silver)

·         Heart of Illinois HR Council (Silver)

·         Kankakee Area HR Managers Association (Silver)

·         Quincy Area SHRM (Bronze) Good Job!

·         Rock River HR Professionals Association (Silver)

·         Grundy Will HR Association (Last year no award) Awesome!

·         Illinois Fox Valley SHRM (Silver)

Bronze:

·         DuPage SHRM (Last year no award) Awesome!

·         Decatur Area SHRM (Silver)

PHR, SPHR, GPHR, SHRM & HRCI What is going On?

So if you pay any attention to what goes on out here in HR cyberspace, you could not have missed that SHRM is changing its certification system – and to be correct perhaps I should say “transitioning” rather than changing.  At this point much, has been said and written.  Just in case you have been under a rock or in a different universe, here are a few examples.

• TLNT
• Ben Eubanks at Upstart HR
• Brad Galin at Roller Coaster HR
• Workforce

Not unlike Ben Eubanks, I have done some of my own research to try to understand what is happening.  Some comments that I have heard from fellow SHRMies is that this is a money grab by SHRM, or that it is a family feud (minus Richard Dawson) between HRCI and SHRM.  At this point I do not know how we arrived at this juncture but we are here.  Most of us who hold these certifications value them. We feel it demonstrates to the world our competency.

Now to go and change it, almost out of the blue seems ludicrous.  I am reminded of time when my oldest son was attending what is now Missouri S & T. When he enrolled, they had a huge public relations campaign to grow the university with the tag line “The Name, The Degree, The Difference.”  Then, almost without any notice or fanfare, they went and changed the name of the university to Missouri University of Science and Technology a.k.a MS&T. Thus it would appear that the previous ad campaign was wrong, and the tag line was just a marketing ploy.

My point is this, SHRM is cutting to the credibility of the certification if they arbitrarily stop doing one thing and start doing another.  So all that stuff we said in the past was wrong?  I know that on-going change is necessary but in this instance it would seem change should be more evolutionary than revolutionary.

Another other thing that is unclear to me is this.  As I understand it, HRCI exists to administer the HR Certifications, that’s it.  If SHRM is no longer going to use them what becomes of them.  I would liken this as a business with one customer, and that business decides they are no longer going to do business with their one customer – what now? 

I am not naive enough to not understand there is a whole bunch more to this story, and probably a lot of it makes good sense.  The problem is this.  That story has not been communicated. The story has been communicated poorly, or it has not been communicated at all. Then BAM!  We are changing all of this, PHR, SPHR, GPHR –HRCI.  This is disconcerting to SHRM members who proudly hold these certifications.

I know this will all get squared away, and explained to the masses and it will all be fine.  However,  for now I say SHRM shame on you – you botched this one!

- Dave Ryan Co-Legislative Director for Illinois SHRM

2014 ILSHRM Conference – All The Juicy Details

With many of us still thawing out from the Polar Vortex, I thought a little something to make us think about warmth, happiness and growth would be a nice change of pace.

It will be warm in August.

Being around smart people who get where we are coming from makes us happy.

Attending three jam packed days of awesome content to challenge our minds and help us improve both ourselves and our workplaces helps us grow.

Of course I'm talking about ILSHRM14!

We are still hammering out some minor details, but the important stuff is figured out.

The pre-conference workshop has been designed.

The keynotes are settled and so excited to grace our stage.

The concurrent sessions are decided and scheduled.

We even know what time everything is happening.

You can get all of the preliminary details here. All of this information will be up on our website shortly.

To register for the conference or pre-conference workshop click here.

-Sabrina Baker - Conference Chair

If you are a vendor who is looking for information on sponsoring or exhibiting with us, please email ilshrmexpo14@gmail.com

ILSHRM14 - Shaping the Future of HR

I cannot believe it is 2014.  It is mind boggling to me how fast time goes as we get older.

It's also mind boggling how fast things change.

Our profession is not what it was 20 years ago. I'm going to say that it isn't even what it was 10 years ago. 

We are different. Better. Evolved.

Sort of.

We are more entrenched in our businesses than we ever have been and yet.....we aren't.

We understand the importance of being a business partner more than ever before and yet....we don't.

It's not the same for everyone, but some of us are stuck. We are stuck in between who we were and who the business now needs us to be.

It's only going to get worse.

Business is changing and with that we have to change. We have to think about what will be expected of us in the future and adapt quickly.

It is my hope that this year's ILSHRM conference will help.

The theme is Shaping the Future of HR and everything from the pre-conference workshop to the keynotes to the Monday night mixer is going to focus on preparing each of us for what future business expects of us.

It's going to be awesome (if I do say so myself).

Let me introduce you to our keynotes:

Jeff Lanza is an award-winning, nationally known speaker whose career as an FBI Special Agent has fueled his passion for helping people and organizations. He will be speaking on Leadership Ethics: How to Ensure a Future of Employee and Corporate Integrity.

Jennifer McClure is President of Unbridled Talent LLC, a consulting and advisory firm providing services to clients in the areas of recruiting & human resources strategy, employment branding and leadership/career development. Jennifer will be sharing her very popular keynote, The Future of HR: Delivering Competitive Advantage Through Innovative People Strategies 

Jim Knight cut his teeth in the training field in the Hospitality industry, starting out as a restaurant staff-level employee for Olive Garden and Hard Rock Café. He eventually became the head of the School of Hard Rocks, running point on all training & development functions for Hard Rock International. As you would expect from someone who spent years at Hard Rock, Jim will be talking to us about Culture that Rocks!

I didn't do three J's on purpose, but that's kind of cool. With our MC John Hudson in the mix it's the perfect superfecta! 

Now for the pre-conference workshop.

You might remember Joe Gerstandt from the times he has keynoted with his Talent Anarchy partner Jason Lauritson. Joe is the bald one. Well this time he is partnering up with Doug Shaw an enchanting bloke from London to offer a three hour workshop that is going to stretch our minds in ways HR professionals are not accustomed to.

They will be presenting the Art of Leadership and when I say art I am not being theoretical. They literally mean art. Doug and Joe are going to help us tap into our creativity and apply new techniques to aid in creative thinking and problem solving. They also plan to show us how creativity can help us in our succession planning and development of employees.

Seriously, I cannot do it justice in a blog post. I'm going to see if I can't get these guys to tape a short video for us explaining what they are up to. Leave them a note in the comments if you would like that!

So there you have the ILSHRM14 updates for now. Lots, lots more to come in the upcoming weeks. 

I hope you are planning on joining us August 3-5 in Oakbrook. If you weren't, hopefully this blog post has changed your mind. To register click here.

See you soon!

Sabrina

Illinois SHRM Leadership 2014

Drury Lane - Home of the ILSHRM Conference

Tomorrow I am headed for a meeting in Northern Illinois - Tinley Park to be more specific. It is a meeting of the Illinois SHRM board and officials from, all of the SHRM chapters, within the state.  We are coming together to plan for 2014, discuss agendas, see how we can support one and other as well as (the old SHRM stand-by here)  advance the profession, and listen to Pam Green speak. Why?  Why do people who will attend this event do this?  While it is almost a rhetorical question I know a lot of people, many very smart people who simply just don’t get it, and I am really hard pressed to explain it to them.  I have  been questioned about this by bosses, relatives, spouses, neighbors and the list goes on.

In addition to the things mentioned above there are two things that most of us get on a personal level, that being networking and kindling friendships.   I must say that over the years I have come to consider many of my friends who are active within the community to be my very good friends, so my much so that  I know about their families, their outside interests (other than SHRM) and  who they area as a person.

As part of the ILSHRM  group,  two or three times a year we get together, attend some meetings, support our profession,  put together a conference or two, create and get some HRCI credits and really and truly enjoy ourselves immersed in our own little world of HR.  Those outside of the cult are left with bewilderment.  Perhaps that’s how it is supposed to be, for if they knew how much fun we have discussing employee engagement or emotional intelligence they would all want to come and crash our party.

So to all of my ILSHMies, old and new I am looking forward to seeing you, being with you and doing our cult thing!  ILSHRM Rock-on!

- Dave Ryan 

January #SHRMChat on Social Media

Preparing for the upcoming #SHMRChat, we had a banter about using social media for State Councils and local SHRM Chapters – where is it at and where is it going. We have decided this conversation won’t be at the rudimentary level as most of the folks that hang our here are way past that. We have reached use of Social Media v 2.0 (or higher – pick your number).

So for tonight’s chat we wanted to delve into how social media and the web based tools are being used to truly engage members and chapters not just to make announcements to the world.

In Illinois we have begun to engage members by setting up a few webinars. They are relatively easy to do, and the tools to do so are inexpensive. We have also found discussions on LinkedIn as another way to engage others. In our chat I would be curious to know if anyone is using Google Hangouts as a way to engage. It seems like a great tool. How about Instagram or Pintrest what are you doing that is “out there?”

Here are the obligatory Five (5) questions we will discuss on our chat tonight.

Q1. What platform or medium has created your best engagement activities?

Q2. How do you measures success or failures when you are using social media

Q3. What tricks do you have or use to promote events or conferences?

Q4. Do you have any metrics to measure the value of your social media efforts?

Q5. What should SHRM be doing to help/train chapters and councils on SM?

See you Tuesday night 1/14/2014 at 8 Eastern/7 Central on hashtag SHRMChat (#SHRMChat).